Grave Plots

[Kimbah]

I'm hoping someone could help me with my query. Upon searching the Rookwood Cemetery website and looking up ancestors Matilda Marshall b.1847-1897 and her son Joseph Marshall Jr b.1864-1889. Both are in separate plots however, in Joseph's plot there are 3 other people buried with him. One is a 5 month old baby who from neglect and the others are 2 males. None of which are related. In Matilda's plot there is a young woman aged in her 30's who shot herself. She is also not related.

I am a novice to researching family history and learning new information and was just wondering if this is a similar occurrence as to the way the Devonshire Street cemetery buried people, on top of one another?
Regards,
Kim Christopher

[Talacharn]

Unless you bought a family plot, they could be buried wherever. Plots could be bought, where I am researching, in depths of 1, 2 or 3 for the number of coffins. In poorer, urban areas, coffin depths could be 9 or 10 and all mixed up. Family had to pay for you to be burried. For those with no money, or relative, there were 'pauper-graves'.

[Guy Etchells]

Yes, if it is a single plot the deceased are buried one on top of the other, depending on the graveyard or cemetery the first burial could be at a depth of up to 15 feet from the surface or a shallow as 6 feet depending on how many burials the plot is thought suitable to contain..
There are normally different classes of grave plot, Private, that is a plot sold for a set number of years to a family to bury their dead until the plot contains the agreed number of burials.
Public graves came in two varieties, A Common Grave, (sometimes called pauper graves) these are plots where unrelated people may be buried until the plot contains the specified number of burials. These graves may be wider than standard graves for two reasons. 1. A wider grave allowed more burials within a smaller area of the churchyard/graveyard  2.The lack of headstones over this area gave the churchyard or cemetery a less crowded look.
The other a Second Class Grave, this type of grave allowed a stone and inscription to be placed over the grave, this was a more expensive burial than one in a common grave but cheaper than a private plot whilst still allowing a memorial stone to record a short inscription.
Cheers
Guy